Airsoft GI G4 Brand BBs .20/.28g review by Booligan
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Table of Contents:
Introduction
Ordering/Company Info
First impressions/Packaging
BB Construction
Performance Results
Pros/Cons
Overall
Introduction
Airsoft GI has recently launched their own brand of BBs, the G4 Airsoft line, in several weights and compositions. These Taiwanese manufactured BBs offer high quality ammo and an affordable price. I will be doing a brief write up on this ammo, in the standard composition .20g and .28g weights.
Ordering/Company Info:
I was sent two 1 kg bags of G4 ammo directly from Airsoft GI, where they are currently available here (.20g), and here (.28g), priced at $9.99 and $12.99, respectively. This price is pretty stellar, as with the .20g ammo, you are paying approximately $0.0019 per shot, compared to $0.0028 per shot for Airsoft Elite, $0.0023 per shot for G&G, and $0.0035 per shot for KSC brand ammo. It doesn't sound like a lot, but it equals a few dollars per bag, which can mean several dollars per game. For an M4 using hi-caps, you're looking at about $0.57 to fill a 300 round hi-cap, compared to $0.69-$1.05 for other brands. For the .28g ammo, you are paying $0.0039 per shot, compared to $0.008 per shot with AE, and $0.0045 per shot with JBU and TSD brand BBs. This is very cost effective ammo, but how does it perform? I will cover that in a later section.
First impressions/Packaging:
The G4 brand ammo comes packaged in a very sturdy plastic bag, which is a similar construction and thickness to the packaging used in small electronics. This stuff is very hard to rip, so it is unlikely that you will have a bag burst in shipping. There are also two very small (1-2mm) vent holes on the side, to allow for air pressure to equalize in the bag, again, to prevent bag ruptures. The front of the bag identifies the weight and composition (.20g, .25g, .28g, bio or standard), and it indicates that the BBs are made by Action Army of Taiwan. The back of the bag has information on a G4 CQBR AEG model, which is a nice cross-promotion with the G4 line of guns.
From this point on, click on all thumbnails to enlarge pictures
Bag info
BB Construction:
The BBs are smooth and slick, with no visible seam line or casting nipple. They don't seem to be excessively lubricated, so they should grab the hop-up rubber quite well, without jamming or losing effectiveness. GI's packaging indicates that they are 5.95mm in diameter (+- 0.01mm), however, my calipers aren't that precise (only +- 0.03mm), so I can't really comment on that.
.20g BBs
.28g BB
Upon splitting open the BBs, I've pleased to see a very centrally located air bubble. This is critical to long range precision, as an off center air bubble will affect how the BB spins, and therefore, keeps its forward momentum. I've included a comparison pic to some other brands of BBs to show some less than ideal air bubbles.
G4 air bubbles, .20g
G4 air bubble
Other brand air bubbles, .20g
Multiple bubbles
Deer foot pattern
Way off center
The .28g composition feels a little bit softer, as it tends to crush more than splitting evenly, however, I don't think this will effect shooting, only the effect on hard targets. The air bubble in the .28g is smaller, obviously, and still retains the central location.
.28g bubble
Quite centrally located
Barely visible bubble
Performance Results:
So, how do these things shoot? Objectively, the .20g BBs are quite consistent, FPS wise. The .28g is slightly less consistent than the other brand that I compared it to, as far as FPS goes, but accuracy was about the same at range.
Starting with FPS, I did a basic consistency test using my recent project gun, an ICS Sportline M16 with substantial external and internal work done. Information on this gun can be found HERE.
Test gun
Results, using several different brands and compositions of ammo, shot through a Madbull V1 chrono are as follows:
As you can see, the G4 .20g ammo was the most consistent out of the brands I tested in the .20g range. Unfortunately, I only had the Airsplat .28g Bio ammo to compare the .28g with, and as you can see, the Airsplat ammo was more consistent FPS wise, however, it is slightly more expensive per shot ($0.0043 vs. $0.0039).
Accuracy tests were performed using the same gun, and at my 150' range. I was able to hit my standard torso sized target 90% of the time using all .20g ammo, with the exception of the Airsplat Tracer and Air Venturi BBs. The Tracer ammo seems to go wonky a lot sooner, likely due to its apparent lighter weight, from the FPS results. At longer ranges, all of the .20g ammo tended to go askew, with the G4 and TSD Bio ammo having the least amount of side to side deviation.
With the .28g ammo, The thing was 100% at 150', and dropped down to 90% at 175'. Both brands kept straight at that range, but the hop-up could have used a little more oomph with the Airsplat brand BBs. They feel slightly slicker than the G4 ammo, however, being Bio ammo, washing them before games is a bit of a trick operation. In my opinion, and based on my tests, for the price, I think the G4 ammo is a better option in both weights compared to most of the other brands tested. I would like to have tested the .25g BBs, as that is my preferred weight, along with .23g, but I was not sent any .25 at this time, and they don't currently make .23g.
Pros:
Cheap - $10-13 per 1kg bag
Centrally located air bubble
Slick, but not too slick as to reduce hop-up effect
Great price per shot
Very consistent FPS w/ .20g, and good accuracy with .28g
Cons:
Available only at ASGI (it would be nice to have them available locally, for emergency ammo purchases)
Limited weights initially (having .23, and .3+ weights would be great)
Overall:
I'm always one to welcome more ammo options, especially when they are as effective and inexpensive as the ASGI G4 BBs. The G4 BBs shoot consistently, and are quite accurate, even compared to more expensive BBs. I'm very interested to see what else comes out under the G4 brand name, including Bio ammo, and hopefully, additional weights.
Many thanks again to Airsoft GI and of course, Airsoft Retreat!